County & District Councillor’s Registers of Interests

an “In My View” article by NIGEL WARD, reporting on some apparent discrepancies relating to the requirements of the Localism Act 2011 on the part of a rather high-profile Ryedale District Councillor and North Yorkshire County Councillor. (District and Borough elections – though not County – will be held on 7th May 2015, alongside the General Election).

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Pursuant to an anonymous tip-off, I have been examining the public record Registers of Interests of one Lindsay BURR – a North Yorkshire County (NYCC) Councillor and Ryedale District (RDC) Councillor, who has recently abandoned the LibDem Group and presently sits as a Independent member. The circumstances of the split are not entirely clear, though Councillor BURR is reported (by the Gazette Herald) as stating that, after circa 20 years as a LibDem, her values are no longer aligned with those of the party. Councillor Lindsay BURR is a committed opponent of fracking – and for that, I salute her.

It is not known whether or not the LibDem party considers that its values remain aligned with those of Councillor Lindsay BURR – or, indeed, whether or not they are happy to see the back of her. I do not know the political persuasions of my anonymous informant.

An examination of Councillor Lindsay BURR’s Register of Interests at Ryedale District Council, immediately followed by an examination of returns posted on the CompaniesInTheUK.com website, quickly drew my attention to the following apparent discrepancies.

I refer readers now to the following URL-links (Companiesintheuk.com):

The former lists a Lindsay BURR as having been (and continuing to be) a Director of Intuitions Ltd, from 1st September 2011 until the present day.

The latter lists a Lindsay BURR as having been (and continuing to be) a Director of Kirkham Henry Performing Arts CIC, from 24th January 2011 until the present day.

In both cases, Lindsay BURR is listed at the following address:

Sutton Grange
Norton
MALTON
North Yorkshire
YO17 9PU

Local residents assure me that this identifies Lindsay BURR as the Councillor of Ryedale District Council, and this is confirmed by the information provided on the RDC web-site at the following URL-link:

(1) A member or co-opted member of a relevant authority must, before the end of 28 days beginning with the day on which the person becomes a member or co-opted member of the authority, notify the authority’s monitoring officer of any disclosable pecuniary interests which the person has at the time when the notification is given.

A person’s pecuniary interests are their business interests (for example their employment, trade, profession, contracts, or any company with which they are associated) and wider financial interests they might have (for example trust funds, investments, and assets including land and property).

[my emphasis]

In my view, it is difficult to see how the two companies mentioned above could escape the scope of that definition.

For this reason, I have written to RDC CEO Janet WAGGOTT requesting a diligent investigation of the circumstances described above.

In doing so, I would expect that I have now identified myself as the devil incarnate. But, in my view, Councillors who break the law in respect of their duty to declare disclosable interests risk bringing their respective Councils into disrepute. On that basis, one might reasonably expect Monitoring Officers to welcome the assistance of citizen investigative-journalists.

I have also submitted an FOIA request for sight of Councillor Lindsay BURR’s historical RDC Register of Interests, so that I can compare it with her Companies House public record, in order to establish whether or not it has been the practice and policy of Councillor Lindsay BURR to fail to declare disclosable interests.

I may be wrong, but to the best of my knowledge and belief, the RDC Monitoring Officer is none other than the SBC Monitoring Officer Lisa DIXON. Perhaps unsurprisingly, I have received neither acknowledgement nor response from RDC, or from Monitoring Officer Lisa DIXON. Quelle surprise.

Consequently, I have written to NYCC Monitoring Officer Barry KHAN requesting a diligent investigation of the circumstances described above.

I have also submitted an FOIA request to NYCC for sight of Councillor Lindsay BURR’s historical Register of Interests at North Yorkshire County Council, so that I can compare it with her Companies House public record, in order to establish whether or not it has been the practice and policy of Councillor Lindsay BURR to fail to declare disclosable interests there.

NYCC’s Monitoring Officer Barry KHAN has acknowledged my request (indicating that “this is a matter solely for the police to investigate as it is not within the remit of the Standards Committee to investigate potentially criminal offences”).

The NYCC FOIA department has acknowledged my FOIA request.

I hope (and expect) to be able to report further on these concerns in due course.

I have a right to scrutinise the conduct of elected and paid public servants, and to express an opinion on my findings in any medium, regardless of frontiers. (Article 10, Human Rights Act 1998) – a right I exercise in the public interest, without fear or favour.

About The Enquirer

The North Yorks Enquirer is an internet news magazine covering local, regional and some national news.
It provides a forum for citizen journalists working in the public interest to expose wasteful spending, malpractice and corruption in authorities around North Yorkshire and beyond.